Bihar: Floods wreak havoc in Darbhanga; villagers complain about no help from govt

Life has come to standstill in Hayaghat block in Darbhanga due to incessant rain and floods. Almost every house is submerged.

In Naya Tola village, it is a common sight to see villagers living in makeshift houses constructed on trees made by them, to escape the floodwaters.

Currently, boats are the primary mode of transport in the village but the villagers are complaining that the government has not provided any boats in the village this year. All the boats plying are privately-owned.

In one instance, the villagers complained, a woman, bitten by a snake had to wait for over 12 hours for a boat ride to get medical assistance.

One of the villagers, Babaraj Sahni, said that he has neither received any food as assistance for his family and neither fodder for his cattle.

Upon being asked about any government representative meeting them, he said, "The Mukhia of Hayaghat met us but we have not received anything after our meeting with him."

Villagers are now compelled to use a railway line for transport purposes which poses a great risk. But villagers are citing a lack of an alternative to boats as the terms and fares for the boat ride are dictated by the private boat owners.

"We do not have any other option. The boat-owners have their own terms and conditions and sometimes, even after booking a boat ride, we have to wait for as long as one to two hours," said Mohammad Shaukat, another villager.

Over 134 people have lost their lives as floods wreaked havoc in multiple districts of Bihar.

Around 1.25 lakh people have been evacuated from the flood-affected areas in the state so far. In total, 1,243 villages in the state are reeling under the calamity.